ABOUT SENSEI - William Collazo

William Collazo (b. July 26, 1972) was born in New York City, New York, but only a year later moved to South Florida, where he grew up attending Broward County schools. He began his martial arts training at age five and competed extensively in open competition from ages 8 through 16, winning numerous state and national titles in weapons, forms and fighting, even a world title in all three divisions in 1984. He earned sho-dan (first degree black belt) at age 17, soon after his graduation from Ely High School in Pompano Beach. A year later, he competed in the AAU Junior Olympic Games of 1991, winning a gold, a silver, and a bronze medal.

His exposure to martial arts through the years sparked a profound interest in Asia and Japanese culture and language. Pursuing this interest led him to earn degrees from Cornell University (B.A. in Asian Studies and Religious Studies, ‘94) and Washington University (M.A. in East Asian Studies, ‘00). His studies have centered around Zen philosophy, religious studies, and Japanese language and education, focusing on their relevance to martial arts development and training.

Collazo lived on Osaki-kamijima, a small island in Hiroshima prefecture, Japan for two years (1995-1997) teaching English as a foreign language through the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program. While in Japan, he served one year as the prefectural representative for AJET Hiroshima and as AJET Spectrum co-representative. He also continued to practice karate and began his regular training in the art of kendo (Japanese fencing). He also had the opportunity to travel throughout much of Japan, and even took trips to South Korea and China. More importantly though, Collazo found his calling for teaching while in Japan.